Internet Bandits Somehow Steal More Than £100,000 in Bitcoin

Thieving hackers just raided the coffers of several prominent Bitcoin exchanges and made off with £140,000 worth of digital bullion. Ouch. It turns out that a crapload of devalued Bitcoin still adds up to a lot of stolen cash.

Bitcoin's value took a mighty tumble last summer and has yet to recover but that doesn't mean it's worthless. Nor does it mean that security issues previously exposed by hackers haven't been addressed. Ars Technica reports that 46,703 BTC was stolen from eight digital wallets yesterday—most of which belonged to the Bitconica trading exchange. The hackers hit the currency at a rate of roughly £2.90 per Bitcoin. If they'd attacked at Bitcoin's £20 apogee, all that e-money would have been worth nearly £1 million. [Ars Technica]